Maverick's First Photoshoot

That's actually not true...he's already had quite a few photo shoots, with all the ultrasound practice the ladies at Informed Choices have been using him for. But here are some of his first official pictures... ;)

Last weekend we had Libby Asay take our pictures and I'll tell you...Josh and I are not the most photogenic humans in the world. But she worked her magic and here we are lookin' pretty fab, if I do say so myself. BONUS: The moolah she makes this year from her amazing photography skills goes toward adopting some sweet kiddos. HIRE HER TO TAKE YOUR PICS TOO!

99 pictures in the album and after subtracting some windy hair and weird faces and awkward boobs...these are my absolute faves:

Ummm PS Josh Boersma is a model. I can't.

DO NOT ARGUE WITH ME: MOLLIE'S 12 ORGANIZING COMMANDMENTS

This week I've been helping my sister pack up and move out of the apartment in University Village, where she's lived for the past two years and a half years.

Let me tell you something about Jamie Keil. She does not have the following skills:
Packing
Moving
Organizing
Throwing Things Away
Common Sense (at times)

And I would venture to guess, she isn't the only one who struggles in these areas.

Track cleats, choir heels, and THREE PAIRS of dance team shoes...all still reside in her closet (meaning they've been moved around no less than three times in the past four years). Empty bottles of perfume. Broken clocks, fans, cable cords...all still being stored in the apartment. WHYYYY. Empty picture frames, every Christmas card, thank you note, or important church bulletin she's ever received (she would argue that one, but seriously...she had an entire drawer of flyaway papers that were all 'important'...I had an anxiety attack).

I recall at one point when we've moved in the past four years...she packed tampons in the same suitcase as kitchen pots and pans.

FOR THE LOVE OF GOD WHY.

So for the past 24 hours, I've had these 12 Organizing Commandments racing through my head. Do not argue or question me here, people. It is what it is. I am the Queen of Organizing and this may offend you...but at the end of this blog post, you will certainly be rethinking why you've kept that high school drill team jacket you haven't worn in EIGHT YEARS because you weren't sure what to do with it because it has your name embroidered in orange thread on the chest.

Answer: GET RID OF IT. Which is exactly what I did with it this week.

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1. If it's broken, and it's been broken for at least 30 days...throw it away. Just face it, you're never going to fix it (my husband is a habitual offender of this rule).

2. If you haven't worn it in the past 6 months...ask yourself why? You're allowed to keep the item in question for another 6 months, but after it's been ONE YEAR and it still hasn't been worn...PUT IT IN THE DONATE PILE.

3. When was the last time you used that miniature George Forman (or other useless kitchen tool/appliance?) Once or twice or NEVER??? DONATE.

4. Ask yourself, "Do I even like this?" If the answer is no, or you're really not sure if you like it...there is no point in keeping useless, senseless crap. DONATE.

5. ALIKE THINGS TOGETHER. Ask yourself, "Does putting this here make sense?" And then REALLY think about it. If the item you're thinking about passes the first four commandments, find it a home where it has ALIKE FRIENDS. Don't just throw those volleyball pads in the bottom of the bathroom closet because you're not sure about where else to put them, put them with your workout clothes, or maybe your gym bag/shoes. And if you haven't played volleyball since you were a senior in HS (COUGH COUGH JAMIE) THINK AGAIN ABOUT WHY YOU'RE KEEPING THEM. DONATE.

6. For the love of all the is good and holy, PLEASE utilize as many bins, baskets, and totes as humanly possible. Use them like your life depended on it.

 7. Jamie says I don't keep sentimental things because I don't have a heart. Which is a little true. But here is my problem with those aforementioned flyaway papers that fill an entire desk drawer. I see two end results here...ONE. She keeps the special cards/papers for a year, at which point we have this argument all over again and this repeats itself for the next 5-20 years. Or TWO. She can throw them away now and we never have to deal with it again. I keep about 50% of the special cards and notes we get in the mail...and for me, the end result is a scrapbook. So that makes sense...find which group you fall into and START THROWING THINGS AWAY.

8. Everyone is allowed ONE junk drawer in their home. I suggest you choose that drawer wisely.

9. Are you a box collector? I happen to live with two of them. If the matching box and item have been in your possession for longer than 6 months... the box can be thrown away because it's likely you can no longer return the item to the store where you purchased it (this is where filling out that lifetime warranty paperwork and keeping the manual in an organized binder is KEY). In October and November, collecting boxes for Christmas gifts is allowed, but it is NOT necessary to collect boxes for a full 12 months (COUGH COUGH JOSH).

10. "I can't get rid of that because (insert very special family friend/neighbor/church member) gave it to me for my (insert graduation/confirmation/wedding/birthday)!" Listen...I'm sure that crocheted orange pot holder was made with love. But here's the thing. My kitchen isn't, and will never be decorated with orange as the accent color. DONATE.

11. Prioritize. I know at Christmastime, I want 8 trees, minimum, decorating our Christmas Wonderland at 422 13th St. That means I need to be organized and efficient with my use of space in the basement and books from Freshmen year of college being stored in a tote can probably be gotten rid of to accommodate more important things. In our case, those important things are Christmas trees.

12. Find creative ways to keep things you love or have special meaning, without letting them become clutter. American Girl Dolls should be lovingly and carefully packed away in a labeled tote and stored in a safe place. 30 high school Cross Country t-shirts can be turned into a t-shirt blanket and used for cuddling. Hankies from great G'ma can be framed and hung on a gallery wall for a sweet little vintage touch.

I'm not totally heartless. I just see no point in keeping ugly blankets in their packaging stored in the top of the bedroom closet for 25 years (COUGH COUGH MOM AND DAD), just because they were 'wedding gifts from so-and-so.'

 And do you want to know what makes getting rid of stuff easy and fun? I give you three words:

FACEBOOK SWAP
OVERFLOW

If it's something I think would sell well on the Facebook Swap site, I snap some pictures and post it up. Give it a few weeks to monitor the activity, and if it isn't selling, to Overflow it goes. It's a great way to make a few extra bucks for coffee dates and baby consignment sales. :)

If it's not really an item that can sell on Facebook (clothes, odds and ends) I put it in the Overflow pile. Getting rid of that crocheted orange pot holders made by your Great G'ma is a lot easier when you know someone might pay 50 cents for it, and that 50 cents will go toward sponsoring kiddos in Africa. Not kidding, it's a whole new kind of motivation for getting rid of things.

If I had to add a 13th Commandment, it would be go to through every drawer, closet, shelf, desk, container in your entire house ONCE A YEAR. Twice is preferred.

Sorry okay I'm done. I've given all the organizing knowledge I have. Do with it what you will.

Now it's time to get back to helping Jamie go through her sock drawer to decide if the fuzzy pink socks she got in a Christmas stocking six years ago, should be kept or thrown away (and FYI, certain things should just be THROWN AWAY).

MmB

The Stay-At-Home-Mom Conundrum

It dawned on my the other day that maybe people keep asking me if I'm going to stay at home or go back to work after the baby is born...because I've never really proclaimed our Future Family Plan from the mountaintop that is our blog. ;)

So for those of you who are wondering...I'll be staying at home, drinking All The Coffee, with the Today Show on from 7-11, trying to keep an infant alive. Mom dates, Library Time, Titus 2 Play Group, Tot Time at the pool, and walks around Ada Hayden are all on my list of mom-dreams that I'm excited to accomplish in this next phase of life.

Two of the reasons I've always wanted to me a mom: 1. It's finally acceptable to spend all day every day at the pool again, and 2. I desperately want to drop my kids off and pick them up each summer at Hidden Acres because I MISS IT THERE SOOOO MUCH AND ADULTS CAN'T BE CAMPERS.

To stay at home? Or to not stay at home? These are the basic, uncomplicated reason's I'll be at home for the foreseeable future...

1. Pretend I took maternity leave for a month or two...that sounds good in theory since my job really isn't that 'hard.' But in 2013 when I got my tonsils out, Tami didn't fare well during my two-week absence. In fact, when I came back she said I could never leave her again...so...replacing me was just absolutely necessary.

2. I work 30 hours a week, and since childcare costs have soared through the roof here in the 'big ole city' (I believe the going rate when I was at the babysitter in the 90's was $1/hour/kid?), some weeks we would probably just break even from my income. Staying home is just a more logical option for us.

3. Josh and Boersma Lawn Care have become a very real job for me. And I don't mean just the laundry and the grocery shopping and the early-morning lunch-making and extra cleaning that is required...that's just the normal stuff. I'm talking about driving to Grand Junction to pick up a spring for the Dixie Chopper at 2pm on a Tuesday. Taking parts to VanWall. Keeping up with the billing that takes longer each week as Josh's grows BLC. Shuttling employees to and from their vehicles when routes and schedules don't line up (I was in my car driving for over FOUR HOURS at one point last week). Taking Josh's phone calls forwarded to my phone so he can spend his time working and not constantly on the phone. Copying truck keys, fixing iPhone screens...Not to mention the marketing duties I've slacked on this spring because I've been too busy with all that stuff I just mentioned. Spring mailers, thank you cards, BLC sign and clothing orders...it would just not be humanly possible to balance C21 AND BLC + Baby and do it all well (the doing it well part is KEY).

4. I really love being at home. I know, I know, "You won't feel that way next winter when your kid is sick and you're trapped inside for three months!" say all the mom's. And that's probably true...but also - I don't think anyone knows how MUCH I love being at home. I've created a space that I love but rarely get to enjoy. And I'm actually really looking forward to that.

I know I won't have hours on end to scrapbook and clean and sew projects and paint while I'm home (that's why I'm on a rampage to get all those things done BEFORE August)...but from what I hear, after the first few months...and with only ONE newborn alien to keep alive...a lot of this is really do-able. It's when #2 and #3 arrive that things get tricky. My sister-in-law painted her guest bedroom a month or two after she had Beau and she has three kiddos. So I guess we'll just have to see what kind of mom-crazy I turn out to be.

5. Mom's who work full-time and complain about never getting to see their babies annoy me. Mom's who stay at home and complain about how they're sick of their kids and are going crazy annoy me. IT IS MY GOAL IN LIFE TO BE NEITHER OF THOSE SO HELP ME GOD. And I think balancing my BLC "job" with mom-life will make that somewhat easier since I'll still have something besides 'mom' as a title to keep my brain busy. Last week I took six of Josh's phone calls one day and thought to myself, "Heck, stay-at-home-mom's complain about never talking to adults...I just talked to adults for almost an hour!" So I think I'm already on to something there. ;)

I kind of had the perfect set-up growing up with a mom who worked Monday, Wednesday, and every-other Friday, plus one Saturday a month. I have fond memories of coming home from school to fresh-baked cookies on the table and watching Arthur after homework was done. I also have fond memories of spending my days at Mary Jo's with my besties in the sandbox and in the little pool on the deck. And one Saturday a month when we woke up and mom was gone, dad attempted a pony-tail and let us help him with his usual Saturday errands. I actually cannot imagine a better arrangement and it's my goal to attempt to somehow accomplish this balance. I didn't realize it at the time, but Jamie and I sort of had it made.

I've heard 'Don't you think you'll miss it?' no less than 41 times. I'm so glad everyone knows how much I love working at C21 and of course I'll miss it! But I also miss sitting in the Design Café drinking lattes and writing art history papers. And I certainly miss spending my summers atop a lifeguard chair for 10 hours a day. Seasons of life change...it is what it is. And for this season...at home with a baby is where you can find me.

MmB

Our Quest to Become Morning People: Continued

I posted this about two weeks ago and I'd proudly like to announce...

WE'RE WELL ON OUR WAY TO BEING MORNING PEOPLE!

Josh is absolutely hating this because when he gets up at 6 it usually means he's working until 9pm...but I have been loving the schedule change. I get so much done! Before heading into work each day I'm able to get the house picked up, some laundry going, beds made, dishes washed...all very mom-like-grown-up stuff.

Truth be told, we didn't go to church this morning. I know, I know...but Josh had to work, the Boersma's churched in Ankeny today, and I didn't want to go by myself. Our only day of the week to truly 'sleep-in' and we were still up by 8:30 ready to start the day. Eggs were somehow made for breakfast. Coffee too. WHO ARE WE.

Disclaimer: Josh has worked every day for the past...umm...like 100 days. I'm not kidding. So when he requests to sleep in instead of going to early church and then working the rest of the day (as some would recommend) I let it slide. We're in summer-lawn-care-survival mode right now ya'll. And there's nothing I can do about it.

I sent Josh off to work ( :( ) and spent the rest of the morning reading on the deck because the aforementioned chores that are accomplished during my early weekday mornings mean I have a fairly legitimate, constantly clean house. I know...it's super weird. So I decided to be reeeeeally mom-ish and crack open my first pregnancy/parenting/baby book while wearing...yep...a maternity swimsuit. I died a little just typing that sentence but the swimsuit is a gray leopard print (purchased for $7.48 last summer on the Target sale rack WUTUP) and I was actually able to get a good burn going. So...just whatever about it.

My friend Hope once told me when her G'ma was pregnant and wanted to get a tan outside, she had her husband dig a perfect pregnant-belly-sized hole in the ground, laid towels down, and she was able to tan laying on her stomach. We laughed about this story at the time thinking it was ridiculous...but now I am actually seeing some great value in it. Now I just need to find a spot in the yard where Josh will let me dig a giant hole..................................

I swept and rearranged the deck. Finished one of the crafts I had going in Baby Room (dyyyying to reveal little parts of this but I am forcing myself to wait until it's completely FINISHED), and here I am writing another blog post. Hmmm...mornings...who knew?!

So I can finally say we have officially triumphed over the early mornings of the past couple of weeks. And we are probably 80% morning people.

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In other news, I've decided to paint our front door hot pink. No, you didn't read that wrong. Yes, I said hot pink. I've been mulling this idea over for about a year now, giving me ample time to weigh the pros and cons (for those who think this is a hormonal decision, I can show you the pro and con list I've had going on my phone). I've decided the only drawback is that it will clash a little with my 4th of July exterior decor, but that's only out for a couple weeks anyway...and 4th of July obnoxiously clashes with everything...it is what it is.

When I say 'hot pink'..this is the hot pink I mean. Also...these nails are very out of character for me since I usually make Jamie plant my flowers while I 'assist' (and by assist I mean...avoid my fingernails looking like this at all costs by watching while she plants) but she had to study for finals or whatever so I was 100% on my own yesterday. 

If I hate it, I have tons of neutral spare paint in my basement that I could cover it right up. Christmas at 422 13th St. has been brought up by multiple concerned parties (ahem...moms...sisters) and since I'm pulling out all the stops with the antique/vintage ornaments (pinks, purples, turquoises mixed with red and green and gold balls) this year, I've come to the conclusion that a hot pink door will only lend itself to the theme I'm going for.

Plus now I can get away with doing varieties of pink flowers in my flower pots...which I've always shied away from based on the 4th of July always nagging at me to plant red flowers. Yesterday I filled every blessed one of my flower pots with 100% PINK.

Perhaps my obsession with making everything inside our house NEUTRAL has resulted in my catapulting to the opposite side of the spectrum...hence the hot pink door, flowers, and shirt I bought yesterday at Target for $4.50. 

I don't know if it's because I know I will be outnumbered with boys in a mere three months or what...but right now painting our front door hot pink sounds like the best possible way to spend my Monday evening. WHO ELSE CAN SAY THEY HAVE A HOT PINK FRONT DOOR?!?! No one I can think of. And that's the way I like it. ;)

MmB

Not Your Typical Bridal Shower

Last weekend I had the honor of decorating a shower for a dear friend from my home church and his bride-to-be. Jon and I grew up together... Sunday School, Youth Group, countless retreats, trips, and insane lock-in memories all include Jon Maley. Truth be told, he was kind of a punk in 8th grade, which I witnessed first-hand from the opposite side of the confirmation table in the church library. Bless.

Carley is best friends/roomates with my love bug Nikki. It's so funny how God works things out. :) Anyway, since I'm a Facebook/Pinterest stalker, specifically when I'm looking for decorating inspiration...this camping/wilderness/adventure theme is what I came up with for this couple. It seems like they're always posting about water skiing, rock climbing, biking, hiking, canoeing...etc. Not to mention they look like models while doing all of these things. Think I'm kidding?

Exhibit A:

Weird I put someone else's engagement picture on my blog? Only weird if you let it be weird. 

Anyway, the decorations for this adventuresome couple...Donna Seehusen was shower committee president and I think she thought I was crazy on more than one occasion when I started decorating the tables with Josh's flannel shirts. I ALWAYS HAVE A VISION! WHEN WILL PEOPLE JUST LEARN TO TRUST ME. ;)

This might have been my favorite little set-up. That's a camping chair borrowed from Jillynn; my dad's legitimate vintage sleeping bag from the 70's; a flannel blanket that is over 30 years old (a gift from my mom to my dad before they were even married); a boat that used to be a decoration in Brecken's nursery (thanks again Jill); and a flannel canoeing picture of the couple to fit the decor.

I love it when a plan comes together.

Showers at my church tend to be pretty traditional. Questions like, "But where will we put the gifts if there are all these decorations on the table?" were met with answers from a true temperamental designer, "THEY CAN GO ON THE FLOOR OR BEHIND THE TABLE BECAUSE THIS IS MY VISION OKAY?!" ;)

I love that I can drag these chalkboards from here to kingdom come and they work for almost every theme in every setting. And when they get scratched I just throw another coat of paint on them. Which is actually what we did the day before the shower in the middle of decorating. I actually didn't even change the words on this one straight from my house because...I did it back in January and it was reeeeeally hard to get like that. So just...ok?

Flannel blanket with some woodsy touches along with a few more rustic engagement pictures and TA-DA! Camping Bridal Shower Perfection.

Most bridal showers don't include a cow skull on the food table?

Oh.

Even though this shower was at 9:30am, I still really wanted a way to write, 'I love you s'more' on a chalkboard somewhere. When I asked, a lovely shower committee member volunteered to make s'more bars with golden grahams in the recipe and I was giddy they were so perfect for the theme.

I drug a couple of my smaller-easy-to-transport Christmas trees home and put them smack on the middle of the food table. This time I had questions like, "But where will we put all the food that's supposed to go here?" "THE FOOD WILL GO AROUND THE DECORATIONS BECAUSE DECORATIONS ARE EVERYTHING OKAY." ;)

The flannel garland laced around the trees and on the head table is just re-used from the shower we threw Susan last year. At the time I thought to myself, "I could probably just get rid of these because what are the odds I'll ever throw another camping shower again?" Baaaahahahahaha.

Now this is where Pinterest stalking reeeeeally came in handy. I had chalkboards coming out my ears at this shower so I knew I wanted something cute on this one, but wasn't sure what. I checked Jon and Carley's Facebooks for statuses or quotes...or anything I could put this chalkboard. Then the morning of the shower I realized I could check all of Carley's Pinterest boards! I found something that looked like this, copied it and VOILA. Jon actually asked if he got to keep this. The answer was no, but I was happy they liked it so much. ;)

I just love Seehusen's...I love 'em all to pieces.

With the groom!

Truth be told...I wanted the whole shower committee to wear flannel shirts; have all the shower attendees sit on the floor on sleeping bags; and have the couple open presents from a tent set up on the stage...I go pretty hard when I get a theme in mind. Fine I know that would have been ridiculous, but it would have also been pretty awesome AMIRIGHT?!

MmB